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Compare Prices on Carnival Paradise Western Caribbean Cruises

Far from the best of cruises

Sail Date:
September 2012

Destination:
Western Caribbean

Embarkation:
Tampa

This is the third Carnival cruise on which I have sailed. I enjoyed the other two thoroughly, but this one was on the poor side of marginal; and, as a result, I would never go on a Carnival cruise again.
The ship itself was poorly maintained from the standpoint of being rusted, stained and run-down. The housekeeping was very good, but there is only so much good housekeeping can make up for poor maintenance. The Paradise was anything but - it was in desperate need of dry dock or retirement!
The food was bland, tasteless and offered a very poor choice. No "special" foods were served unless you want to consider the lobster, which was smaller than the shrimp served with it or the "baked Alaska" which was a thin slice of Neapolitan ice cream covered with a thin layer of undercooked meringue. The food offered on the "midnight" buffets was most often over-cooked and cold. There was little variety and lunch and dinner were exactly the same.
Worst by far was the poor communication More
system. We started out well enough with a well-run safety drill, but things went rapidly downhill from there. Lines were cut in half and after waiting for 30 minutes to get to the middle of a debarkation line, it was split and we found ourselves at the end of the line again. There was little information available for the two ports of call, and much of the information that was given was incorrect. At 8:30pm the night before our Cozumel port we received notice that our shore excursion was canceled due to under-booking, and giving instruction to see the Shore Excursion (which was closed) or the Guest Services desk. We were told at Guest Services that there was absolutely nothing they could do to get us on a different tour and were very reluctant to call the Shore Excursion Manager. After about 30 minutes of useless dialog, they finally did call the Manager who was quite accommodating in getting us on a different tour. While were standing to the side of the Guest Services desk, the agent was literally arguing with three other families about a variety of issues they had. In no case was proper resolution obtained by the Guest Services agents. If an employee tells a customer that he/she is unable to perform his/her job, for whatever reason, there is a problem with the manner the company is run.
Overall, my entire family, daughter and son-in-law with their three children, were very disappointed with the cruise.
Choose a different ship, if not a different cruise line. Less

Compare Prices on Carnival Paradise Western Caribbean Cruises

Cabin review: Carnival Paradise Oceanview Riviera M193

Our cabins M191 and M193 were as spacious as can be expected on a ship the size of the Paradise. The bathroom was adequate and the shower was quite large with excellent water pressure. The beds were very comfortable. The room accommodated three people with ease, but it would have been crowded with a fourth person. Housekeeping was excellent. Room, however, was dated, windows were stained and metal around windows was rusty. Cabins were very noisy in the morning beginning about 6am.